Timables, out of the past and into the present

There are certain dishes I associate with certain times in my life. When Isaac andI first started dating, we would make this southwestern fchicken pizza all the time, with tomatoes, corn, and smoked cheddar cheese. Eating Uni-mart mozzarella subs reminds of of all the late nights at the Maroon. Then there are certain dishes. The infamous caramelized-banana-breadpudding-rum raisin ice cream dessert from California Cafe. A perfect crepe on the streets of Paris. And, finally, eating timbales with Jenna in New York.

I visited Jenna my sophomore year of college and had lunch with her one day near where she worked. I have no recollection of what I ordered, but she definitely ordered some type of spinach timbale. It was delicious. Hearty but tender, healthy and semingly rich all at the same time, we devoured her lunch and pushed mine to the side.

What is a timbale? Apparently, its definition is pretty vague. According to Wikiepdia, a timbale is " a large thimble or cone shaped mold used for various sorts of food". In my head, a timable is some sort of savory mixture of vegetables and eggs, cooked in a muffin tin. As this one spinach timbale has been haunting me in a certain way for 4 years now, I figured it was worth try. And you know what I discovered? Confronting your demons is a good thing, as these little babies were easy to make, tasty, and a perfect sort of anytime vegetarian friendly snack.

I chose to use spinach and carrots as my two main ingredients, as I wanted it to be heavy on the vegis. I used eggs to bind it together and then added some cheese to punch up the flavor and make it a bit richer. This is certainly one of those dishes that could go in a myriad of directions. I could see rice or quinoa working, some chard or other leafy green subbing in for the spinach, and really whatever flavors you like making a timbale. Think of it as a smaller, less egg-oriented, more vegetable-ish, omlette.

Spinach-Carrot Timbales (for Jenna)

Ingredients
1 bag frozen spinach, thawe
4 carrots, grated (use the cuisinart grater if you have one)
3 eggs
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/4 cup grated swiss or emmanthal
1 tspn garlic powder
salt and pepper to taste

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Toss all ingredients in a bowl together and stir well. Grease muffin tins w/pam or oil and fill each tin with the mixture. Put in the oven and bake for 15 minutes, or until the custard has set. You may need to do more than one tray, depending on how much mixture/batter you have. Run a knife around the edge of each timable and remove from the pan to cool. Can be eaten warm or cold, for breakfast, lunch or dinner.